Students react to $480,000 Den renos

By Fabian Mayer, September 10 2015 —

Beer is once again flowing at the Den. The campus bar was closed over the summer for renovations, but reopened on Sept. 3 with new flooring, furniture and lighting.

Third-year kinesiology student Shannon Girogini was impressed by what she said felt like a classier atmosphere after checking out the bar’s new look with a friend.

“We were saying we like that it’s lighter, it seems like you can actually see what’s going on,” Giorgini said. “Last summer when we came it was very dark. It’s hard to see — especially if you’ve had a few drinks.”

The renovations cost the Students’ Union around $480,000.Giorgini isn’t sure whether the renovations are worth it.

“I liked the Den before, I like the Den now. It doesn’t really determine whether I go or not and I think that’s the same for a lot of students,” Giorgini said.

Giorgini and her friend were surprised to find the bathrooms hadn’t been renovated. Overall, though, she believes the new Den reflects positively on the SU.

“It shows that [the SU] cares about our experience here and where we have fun,” Giorgini said.

SU vice-president operations and finance Sarah Pousette said the response from students has generally been good so far.

“I’ve heard some amazingly positive things, students really feel that it looks great, but they also feel that it still is the Den to them,” Pousette said.

Around 1,300 students attended the first “Thursden” of the year on Sept. 3. According to Pousette, this was about the same number as last year and roughly represents the Den’s maximum capacity over one night.

Pousette added that these were mainly first year students who hadn’t seen the Den previously, making it difficult to get reactions regarding the renovations.

“I’m really excited over the next two weeks or so to see what returning students think,” Pousette said.

According to Pousette, the Den is busiest in the first couple weeks of the school year. She hopes the renovations will result in increased business throughout the year.